WMBP7102 Lecture on Literature in English B

Hiroshima University Syllabus

Japanese

Academic Year 2026Year School/Graduate School Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences (Master's Course) Division of Humanities and Social Sciences Humanities Program

Lecture Code WMBP7102 Subject Classification Specialized Education

Subject Name 英語圏文学概論Ｂ

Subject Name
（Katakana）エイゴケンブンガクガイロンB

Subject Name in
English Lecture on Literature in English B

Instructor MATSUMOTO MAI

Instructor
(Katakana) マツモト　マイ

Campus Higashi-Hiroshima Semester/Term 1st-Year,  Second Semester,  4Term

Days, Periods, and Classrooms (4T) Weds5-6,Fri5-6：Faculty Office

Lesson Style Seminar Lesson Style
(More Details) Face-to-face

Credits 2.0 Class Hours/Week 4 Language of Instruction B : Japanese／English

Course Level 6 : Graduate Advanced

Course Area（Area） 23 : Arts and Humanities

Course Area（Discipline） 05 : Literature

Eligible Students

Keywords

Special Subject for Teacher Education 　 Special Subject 　

Class Status
within Educational
Program
(Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)
Criterion referenced
Evaluation
(Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)

Class Objectives
/Class Outline Course Description
This course examines how literary traditions across cultures imagine the human, the ethical self, and the boundaries of emotion, memory, and creation. The first half of each seminar introduces major works of Japanese literature in English translation, treating them explicitly as world literature. Through mythology, court literature, medieval war tales, waka poetry, early modern essays, modern poetry, rakugo storytelling, popular songs, detective fiction, and contemporary novels, we explore how Japanese texts articulate interiority, beauty, grief, nature, humour, and ethical reflection. Reading these works in translation allows us to consider how Japanese literature circulates globally and how its meanings shift across linguistic and cultural contexts.
The second half of each seminar is devoted to a sustained, term long close reading of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. By reading the novel in parallel with Japanese classics, students explore how different cultures confront creation, responsibility, suffering, and the question of what it means to be human. The comparative structure is designed for international students: Japanese literature is introduced through accessible translations, while Frankenstein provides a stable anchor for weekly analytical development.
Aims of the Course
• To introduce students to major works of Japanese literature as world literature.
• To develop close reading skills through weekly engagement with Frankenstein.
• To explore cross cultural conceptions of humanity, emotion, ethics, and creativity.
• To cultivate comparative literary analysis across historical periods and traditions.

Class Schedule The first 45 minutes of the class will be devoted to Japanese literature as world literature, and the latter 45 minutes will be dedicated to close reading of Frankenstein.

Week 1 Lafcadio Hearn
Week 2 Kojiki
Week 3 The Tale of Genji
Week 4 The Tale of the Heike
Week 5 Hyakunin Isshu
Week 6 Kamo no Chōmei / Ki no Tsurayuki/Matsuo Basho
Week 7 Rakugo
Week 8 Shintaishishō
Week 9 Kitamura Tōkoku / Shimazaki Tōson
Week 10 Yagi Jukichi / Muro Saisei /Yosano Tekkan / Yosano Akiko
Week 11 Nakahara Chuya/ Miyazawa Kenji/ Kuroda Saburo/ Kaneko Misuzu / Tanikawa Shuntarō
Week 12 Shōwa Popular Songs (Inoue Yōsui, Nakajima Miyuki, Southern All Stars, Utada Hikaru)
Week 13 Edogawa Ranpo / Matsumoto Seichō /Hirano Keiichirō
Week 14 Abe Kōbō /Keigo Higashino/ Shuichi Yoshida

Text/Reference
Books,etc. Copies of the text will be distributed.
Primary Texts (Japanese Literature)
• Kojiki (Philippi translation)
• The Tale of Genji (Tyler / Waley excerpts)
• The Tale of the Heike (McCullough translation)
• Lafcadio Hearn, Kwaidan (“Mimi nashi Hōichi”)
• Matsuo Bashō, Oku no Hosomichi (Yuasa translation)
• Zeami, Fūshikaden
• Kamo no Chōmei, Hōjōki (Keene translation)
• Kitamura Tōkoku, selected essays
• Shimazaki Tōson, selected poems
• Nakahara Chūya, selected poems
• Tanikawa Shuntarō, “Two Billion Light Years of Solitude”
• Edogawa Rampo, “The Human Chair”
• Matsumoto Seichō, Points and Lines
• Abe Kōbō, The Face of Another
• Hirano Keiichirō, A Man
• Higashino Keigo, The Devotion of Suspect X
• Selected Shōwa Kayō / J Pop lyrics (official translations)
Primary Text (English Literature)
• Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818 edition preferred)
Secondary Texts (Theory & Criticism)
• Lawrence Venuti, The Translator’s Invisibility
• Roman Jakobson, “On Linguistic Aspects of Translation”
• Susan Bassnett, Translation Studies
• Eric C. Rath, The Ethos of Noh
• James R. Brandon, Kabuki: A Cultural History
• Donald Keene, Seeds in the Heart
• Edward Fowler, The Rhetoric of Confession
• Alan Wolfe, Modern Japanese Literature
• Michael Bourdaghs, Abe Kōbō and the Mystery of the Self
Further Reading (Optional)
• Homi K. Bhabha, The Location of Culture
• Edward Said, Orientalism
• Judith Butler, Bodies That Matter
• Sara Ahmed, The Cultural Politics of Emotion
• Franco Moretti, The Bourgeois
• Paul Ricoeur, Time and Narrative

PC or AV used in
Class,etc. Text, Handouts

(More Details)

Learning techniques to be incorporated

Suggestions on
Preparation and
Review Please read the assigned text before class.

Requirements

Grading Method Class Participation and Discussion: 40%
Final Examination (paper materials permitted): 60%

Practical Experience

Summary of Practical Experience and Class Contents based on it

Message

Other

Please fill in the class improvement questionnaire which is carried out on all classes.
Instructors will reflect on your feedback and utilize the information for improving their teaching.

Academic Year	2026Year	School/Graduate School	Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences (Master's Course) Division of Humanities and Social Sciences Humanities Program
Lecture Code	WMBP7102	Subject Classification	Specialized Education
Subject Name	英語圏文学概論Ｂ
Subject Name （Katakana）	エイゴケンブンガクガイロンB
Subject Name in English	Lecture on Literature in English B
Instructor	MATSUMOTO MAI
Instructor (Katakana)	マツモト　マイ
Campus	Higashi-Hiroshima	Semester/Term	1st-Year, Second Semester, 4Term
Days, Periods, and Classrooms	(4T) Weds5-6,Fri5-6：Faculty Office
Lesson Style	Seminar	Lesson Style (More Details)	Face-to-face

Credits	2.0	Class Hours/Week	4	Language of Instruction	B : Japanese／English
Course Level	6 : Graduate Advanced
Course Area（Area）	23 : Arts and Humanities
Course Area（Discipline）	05 : Literature
Eligible Students
Keywords
Special Subject for Teacher Education		Special Subject
Class Status within Educational Program (Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)
Criterion referenced Evaluation (Applicable only to targeted subjects for undergraduate students)
Class Objectives /Class Outline	Course Description This course examines how literary traditions across cultures imagine the human, the ethical self, and the boundaries of emotion, memory, and creation. The first half of each seminar introduces major works of Japanese literature in English translation, treating them explicitly as world literature. Through mythology, court literature, medieval war tales, waka poetry, early modern essays, modern poetry, rakugo storytelling, popular songs, detective fiction, and contemporary novels, we explore how Japanese texts articulate interiority, beauty, grief, nature, humour, and ethical reflection. Reading these works in translation allows us to consider how Japanese literature circulates globally and how its meanings shift across linguistic and cultural contexts. The second half of each seminar is devoted to a sustained, term long close reading of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. By reading the novel in parallel with Japanese classics, students explore how different cultures confront creation, responsibility, suffering, and the question of what it means to be human. The comparative structure is designed for international students: Japanese literature is introduced through accessible translations, while Frankenstein provides a stable anchor for weekly analytical development. Aims of the Course • To introduce students to major works of Japanese literature as world literature. • To develop close reading skills through weekly engagement with Frankenstein. • To explore cross cultural conceptions of humanity, emotion, ethics, and creativity. • To cultivate comparative literary analysis across historical periods and traditions.
Class Schedule	The first 45 minutes of the class will be devoted to Japanese literature as world literature, and the latter 45 minutes will be dedicated to close reading of Frankenstein. Week 1 Lafcadio Hearn Week 2 Kojiki Week 3 The Tale of Genji Week 4 The Tale of the Heike Week 5 Hyakunin Isshu Week 6 Kamo no Chōmei / Ki no Tsurayuki/Matsuo Basho Week 7 Rakugo Week 8 Shintaishishō Week 9 Kitamura Tōkoku / Shimazaki Tōson Week 10 Yagi Jukichi / Muro Saisei /Yosano Tekkan / Yosano Akiko Week 11 Nakahara Chuya/ Miyazawa Kenji/ Kuroda Saburo/ Kaneko Misuzu / Tanikawa Shuntarō Week 12 Shōwa Popular Songs (Inoue Yōsui, Nakajima Miyuki, Southern All Stars, Utada Hikaru) Week 13 Edogawa Ranpo / Matsumoto Seichō /Hirano Keiichirō Week 14 Abe Kōbō /Keigo Higashino/ Shuichi Yoshida
Text/Reference Books,etc.	Copies of the text will be distributed. Primary Texts (Japanese Literature) • Kojiki (Philippi translation) • The Tale of Genji (Tyler / Waley excerpts) • The Tale of the Heike (McCullough translation) • Lafcadio Hearn, Kwaidan (“Mimi nashi Hōichi”) • Matsuo Bashō, Oku no Hosomichi (Yuasa translation) • Zeami, Fūshikaden • Kamo no Chōmei, Hōjōki (Keene translation) • Kitamura Tōkoku, selected essays • Shimazaki Tōson, selected poems • Nakahara Chūya, selected poems • Tanikawa Shuntarō, “Two Billion Light Years of Solitude” • Edogawa Rampo, “The Human Chair” • Matsumoto Seichō, Points and Lines • Abe Kōbō, The Face of Another • Hirano Keiichirō, A Man • Higashino Keigo, The Devotion of Suspect X • Selected Shōwa Kayō / J Pop lyrics (official translations) Primary Text (English Literature) • Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818 edition preferred) Secondary Texts (Theory & Criticism) • Lawrence Venuti, The Translator’s Invisibility • Roman Jakobson, “On Linguistic Aspects of Translation” • Susan Bassnett, Translation Studies • Eric C. Rath, The Ethos of Noh • James R. Brandon, Kabuki: A Cultural History • Donald Keene, Seeds in the Heart • Edward Fowler, The Rhetoric of Confession • Alan Wolfe, Modern Japanese Literature • Michael Bourdaghs, Abe Kōbō and the Mystery of the Self Further Reading (Optional) • Homi K. Bhabha, The Location of Culture • Edward Said, Orientalism • Judith Butler, Bodies That Matter • Sara Ahmed, The Cultural Politics of Emotion • Franco Moretti, The Bourgeois • Paul Ricoeur, Time and Narrative
PC or AV used in Class,etc.	Text, Handouts
(More Details)
Learning techniques to be incorporated
Suggestions on Preparation and Review	Please read the assigned text before class.
Requirements
Grading Method	Class Participation and Discussion: 40% Final Examination (paper materials permitted): 60%
Practical Experience
Summary of Practical Experience and Class Contents based on it
Message
Other
Please fill in the class improvement questionnaire which is carried out on all classes. Instructors will reflect on your feedback and utilize the information for improving their teaching.

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